Firebirds
by twistedstrings
Summary: Umbridge is determined to control Hogwarts, but Hermione, Ginny, and Luna have other plans. The trio has always been political, but now Umbridge is trying to enforce everything they hate and everything Voldemort believes in. There's no way they are going to let her win. This fic contains femme slash, happy-healthy poly, and queerness to the nines. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1: A House Demented

_AN: This is a fic I am writing as a warm up to NaNoWriMo in November. The idea is to start October 1st writing a minimum of 150 words and increase by 50 words a day until the end of October. As soon as November hits I will be abandoning this story to work on my novel, though I plan to return to it in December. You have been warned._

_Trigger Warnings: no trigger warnings (that I am aware of) for this chapter. If you would like me to add something, please let me know!_

* * *

"Watch it!" Hermione shouted as Ginny swooped down low to the table on her broom and scattered Hermione's books and papers. "You really shouldn't be flying inside."  
Ginny laughed and spun her broom around, "Come on, Hermione. We've weeks until school starts again and we've been cooped up in here for ages. You don't need to start studying yet. Come play with us."  
Hermione shook her head. "I need to review my notes from last year before starting to read my textbooks for this year."  
Ginny rolled her eyes. "We haven't been to Diagon Alley yet. You don't even have next year's books yet."  
"I want to start studying as soon as we get them."  
"Please?"  
"No," Hermione insisted. "I'll watch you for a bit though."  
Ginny whooped and flew up to snatch the Quaffle from Fred. She did a barrel roll to avoid the ceiling light, darted between George and Ron, and hit the cupboard door.  
"Point for me!" said Ginny, twirling on her broom.  
Hermione spent another minute watching as George scored, and then Ginny scored again before she lost interest and turned back to her books.  
She shuffled through her notes, trying to find where she had left off, but she was too distracted. The shouts of the Weasley family above her kept piercing her concentration, and most of her attention wasn't on her notes to begin with.  
She was worried about Harry. It was hard to write to him consistently when there was so much she couldn't tell him about. He didn't even know that she was with the Weasleys, or that they weren't at The Burrow. She tapped her quill anxiously on the parchment, spraying little dots of ink across her notes.  
Even after four full years at Hogwarts she couldn't cure herself of the habit of tapping her pen whenever she was nervous or thinking.  
"What is the blazes are you doing?" Mrs. Weasley shouted, setting of the portrait of Sirius's mother.  
Her children halted and Ron dropped the quaffle.  
"Quidditch practice." Fred said, a wide grin on his face.  
"And why," said Mrs. Weasley, huffing, "in Merlin's name, are you doing it inside?"  
"We can't very well go outside, can we?" said George. Ginny and Ron were still frozen in place, not daring to look away from their mother. "We're stuck in here, just like Sirius. It's no wonder he's gone half mad."  
Mrs. Weasley sucked in air and her voice got deadly quiet.  
"You will get off your brooms this instant and hand them to me. This house has far too many hidden spells and nasty creatures for you to be flying around and knocking things about. We are here because it is the only place where I can keep you safe. I will not hear you complain again. Do you understand me?"  
Her children nodded, mute, and brought their brooms to her.  
"Sorry, mum," Fred and George said together. Ginny and Ron nodded in agreement.  
Mrs. Weasley looked over their sorrowful faces and nodded once firmly, then turned and marched out if the room, their brooms tucked under one arm.  
Fred and George looked at each other and shrugged. Then their faces broke into grins, clearly plotting something, and raced up the stairs. Ron traipsed after them, feet dragging on the floorboards, and Ginny came to sit beside Hermione.  
They sat in silence for a while. Hermione kept catching herself tapping her quill. Mrs. Weasley had been on edge ever since she had arrived at Number 12, Grimmauld Place. She was more likely to go off on anyone for any small thing, and never gave herself a moment's rest. Instead, she had attacked the house and the nasty Dark spells and creatures it contained with vengeance, as though the war she waged against the darkness in the house directly translated into successes for the Order. It was worse when Mr. Weasley had guard duty.  
Ginny scooted her chair closer and laid her head on Hermione's shoulder. "Are you done studying yet?"  
"Pretty much. I'm having a hard time concentrating anyways."  
"Would you plait my hair?" Ginny asked.  
Hermione smiled. "I'd love to. Let's go upstairs."


	2. Chapter 2: A Peck of Owls (Part 1)

_Trigger Warning: anxiety related to school and planning for the future (let me know if there is more to add)._

* * *

Hermione tied off the ends of Ginny's braids and pulled her friend into her so that Ginny's back nestled against Hermione's front.  
Ginny hummed and wiggled herself closer to Hermione, who smiled. She knew that after getting her hair brushed and braided, the thing that Ginny loved most was being held.  
Hermione leaned her head on Ginny's shoulder and breathed deeply, relaxing.  
"Hermione?"  
"Yeah?"  
"I don't know if I want to go back to Hogwarts."  
Hermione scoffed, "Of course you do. Where else would you go?"  
"I'm serious," said Ginny. "Everyone in the Order has been so out of sorts, especially mum. And the things that they've been saying in The Daily Prophet about Dumbledore and Harry are really awful. If anyone believes it I think we're going to have a dreadful year at school."  
Hermione nodded. "The Ministry is making such a muck of things, I wouldn't wonder if it carried over to Hogwarts. We have to go back though."  
"Why?"  
"Well," Hermione paused, trying to breathe deeply despite her lungs having shrunk to a quarter of their size. If she didn't go back to school, then she would never learn magic. They would never let her be a witch, and she'd have to go back to the Muggle world, but she'd missed so much of Muggle school she'd be so far behind and everyone would think she was stupid. She'd never find a job and her parents would be forced to take care of her for her whole life.  
Hermione forced her lungs to open up again, though it hurt. "Because school is important."  
"School is very important," Ginny opened her eyes wide and nodded with false solemnity, then stuck her tongue out at Hermione.  
"Hey! It is!" Hermione shouted, indignantly, and then tackled her friend, holding her down on the bed and tickling her.


	3. Chapter 2: A Peck of Owls (Part 2)

_AN: Wix is a gender-inclusive version of witch/wizard. It's what I'll be using to refer to groups of magical people of mixed genders and to the wixing world as a whole._

_Trigger Warnings: None for this chapter. Tell me to add something if needed!_

* * *

"No, no, no!" Ginny gasped through her giggles, pushing at Hermione's hands.  
Hermione immediately stopped tickling her. "Actually no?" she asked.  
"No, not actually. I like it when you tickle me."  
Hermione attacked her again with more vigor until Ginny was panting and limp. Then she pulled Ginny's head onto her lap and stroked her hairline.  
"We have to go back to school. We have lots of work to do." Hermione said.  
"I know. It's just - "  
Downstairs the front door slammed and there was a loud clatter as something was knocked over. In all likelihood it was the umbrella stand.  
"Tonks," said Ginny, rolling her eyes but also smiling to show she didn't actually mind how klutzy Tonks could be.  
The portrait of Sirius's mother started shrieking. Even so, they could still hear Ginny's mother over the din.  
"WHO IN THE BLAZES WAS SUPPOSED TO BE ON GUARD DUTY?"  
"That's not good," said Ginny.  
"Something's wrong," said Hermione, concern in the wrinkles of her forehead.  
The pair crept onto the landing and peered over the edge, not daring to let more than their eyes over the bannister. Neither wanted to suffer Mrs. Weasley's wrath if she caught them spying on the Order.  
"Here," said George over Hermione's shoulder, offering her a thick, fleshy string.  
Hermione jumped and swallowed her yell. She hasn't heard the twins come up. Ginny hadn't twitched.  
Ginny punched George's shoulder. "Don't scare Hermione. She's not used to siblings," she whispered. She took one of the strings. "Are these safe? I don't want them exploding in my ear again."  
"Weasley approved," whispered Fred with a wink.  
"That counts for nothing," Ginny replied, but she inserted the Extendable Ear and dangled it over the railing.  
"Dumbledore is already on his way to the ministry." Tonk's hushed voice sounded as though she was speaking directly to them.  
"What about -"  
"And he sent an owl to tell Harry to stay put," Tonks interrupted Mrs. Weasley. "We have to figure out how to get him here without being killed."  
Everyone on the landing stared at each other wide-eyed.  
"What the hell happened?" whispered Ginny.  
Hermione shook her head. This was serious. Dumbledore wouldn't go to the ministry unless things were very bad considering how much Fudge feared the headmaster and the propaganda the Prophet spewed. What had happened to Harry?  
"We need Allistor and more members of the Order to be an escort," said Mrs. Weasley.  
"Allistor and a few of the others are already on their way. We need to have a basic plan laid out for when they get here and have everything ready to go as soon as Dumbledore gives us the go ahead," Tonks said. They walked into the meeting room and out of range of the Extendable Ears.  
"What are we going to do?" asked Fred.  
"Nothing."  
The others turned to Hermione in shock.  
"Your mother isn't going to let us do anything no matter how much we protest. There are several trained Aurors and some of the best wixes we know who will be going to get him. They don't need us and we won't be helpful."  
Ginny had stopped looking shocked and had started listening.  
"And they'll be bringing him here, because this is the safest place in Britain right now. So what we can do is get ready for him to arrive," Ginny continued Hermione's thought.  
"He's going to be angry," she added and Hermione nodded.  
"Angry? Why would he be angry?" asked Fred.  
"Because we've been here all this time together, with Sirius, and he's been alone."


	4. Chapter 3: The Advance Gaurd (Part 1)

"Hedwig!" George said, as the great white owl swooped down and dropped a letter on Hermione's lap. She pecked Hermione's hands several times and then flew upstairs with two more letters.  
Hermione hurried to open it and read it quickly.  
"It's from Harry. A dementor attacked him and he might be expelled," she said. Her face was blank and her tone expressionless, unbelieving.  
"A dementor was out and about a Muggle town?" asked Fred.  
"That means the ministry sent it. Or the dementors are no longer under their control," said Ginny.  
"Shit," said Fred.  
"There's no way the ministry is going to admit to either of those things," said Hermione. "Harry's in trouble."  
"We're the masters of trouble! We'll get him out of it!" Fred and George said together, overly cheery.  
Hermione gave them a withering look, "Don't be ridiculous. It's good they are bringing him here. Fred and George, go tell Ron to clear out the other side of his room and get it ready for Harry."  
"You're not the boss of us!" George said, but the twins got up and headed up the stairs.  
"Now what?" asked Ginny.  
"Now we wait. There's nothing else we can do until he gets here, and then we'll have to explain everything." Hermione sighed and rested her forehead in the palm of her hand. "I wish I had access to a library here so I could research similar cases and see how they were handled in the past. Though I don't know if it will help."  
"Why not?" asked Ginny.  
"Everything I prepared for Buckbeak's trial should have got him off two years ago, but the ministry had already made up its mind and Lucius Malfoy was blackmailing or bribing the entire judicial panel. Our government is so corrupt, and it's only going to get worse the stronger He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named gets and the more followers he has."  
"Merlin," whispered Ginny. "I keep wanting to forget how bad this is. That we can just go back to school and the rest of the wixing world will sort itself out while we study and try to make things better at Hogwarts, but it's not like that at all."  
Hermione sat in silence. She had nothing comforting to say to her friend. War was coming and there was nothing they could do to stop it.  
"People are going to die."  
Hermione nodded.  
"People I love."  
Hermione nodded again.  
"And there isn't anything we can do to stop it, because if we don't fight, more people will die and people I love will die anyway. There is no choice other than to fight."  
"We've always known that. Every since we started SPEW and started to work against some of the really horrible beliefs that so many people have. We have to fight no matter the consequences, because if we don't, everything will remain the same or get worse."  
Ginny nodded and reached out to Hermione who held her friend in a tight embrace. "We can do this. We're the strongest wixes our age I know."


	5. Chp 4: Number Twelve, Grimmauld Pl (P1)

_AN: This section uses some diaglogue from the book. Partially to help me to get into the heads of the characters, and partially because I think this scene is really important since it's the first time the Golden Trio has seen each other all summer, and partially because I'm lazy. The work is JK Rowling's, not mine! And it's not something I intend to do much in the future._

_AN.2: Thank you to everyone who's following this story and interested in what I have to say! This is the first time I'm writing fanfiction and the first time I'm posting anything online in this sort of a fashion. It's a nice ego boost for me to see that y'all care :)_

_Trigger Warnings: yelling, mention of scars and cuts_

* * *

"Harry! Ron, he's here, Harry's here! We didn't hear you arrive! Oh, how _are_ you? Are you alright? I'm so sorry - I know our letters were useless, but we couldn't tell you anything, Dumbledore made us swear we wouldn't, oh we've got so much to tell you, and you've got things to tell us - the Dementors! Look, they can't expel you, they can't. There's a provision in the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery for the use of magic in life threatening situations. I can't find out any more than that with the books we have here, but -"  
"Let him breathe, Hermione," said Ron, grinning.  
She let go and beamed at him. Hedwig swooped down and landed on his shoulder.  
"Hedwig!" Harry said, reaching up to stoke her feathers lovingly.  
"She's been in a right state," said Ron. "Pecked us half to death when she brought your last letters, look at this - "  
Ron held out his finger and pointed at the large gash on his index finger. It was only half-healed and Hedwig had wounded him deeply.  
Harry looked down at the floor, "Sorry, I wanted answers, you know. I didn't think it through."  
"We really wanted to tell you. We really did. Hermione kept saying you'd go off and do something mad if you were left on your own without any news, but Dumbledore -"  
"Made you swear not to tell me. You've said."  
Hermione watched a steel wall of anger slide behind Harry's eyes. She held her breath. He was going to start yelling soon. After a long moment of uncomfortable silence she said, "Dumbledore seemed to think it was all for the best." She rubbed her thumb across one of the healing scars on her hands, nervously.  
"He thought you would be safest with the Dursleys," Ron said.  
"Did either of you get attacked by Dementors this summer? No? Didn't think so."  
"There have been people from the Order tailing you all the time -"  
"You wouldn't have believed how angry he was when you found out," Hermione said. Awe filled her voice. She'd never seen anyone so totally livid before. It had gone right down to the core of the Headmaster and blazed out through his eyes as brutal as one of the Unforgivable curses.  
"I dunno what he's going to do to Mundungus. He's the one who was supposed to be watching you, but he left his shift early."  
"I'm glad he did. If he hadn't I would have been stuck at Privet Drive all summer."  
"Aren't you worried about the hearing?" Hermione asked, quietly. Harry was reminding her of some of the children who came into her father's office. If you spoke to them with soft voices when you told them about scary dentist things and they were about to freak out, it would help calm them down a little.  
"No," Harry said, with emphasis and turned away. "Why doesn't he want me to know anything?"  
Hermione glanced at Ron. This wasn't going as badly as they had expected, but it wasn't far from their guess. Harry turned back and caught them looking at each other and his face went a shade of red darker.  
"We told him we wanted to tell you, but he doesn't want you to know anything," said Ron.  
"Maybe he thinks I can't be trusted," Harry said.  
"No, no, that's not - " said Hermione.  
"How come you two have got to spend your holidays here, being part of everything and knowing what's going on?"  
"We haven't been!" said Ron. "Mum's not been letting us into the meetings. She says we're too young."  
"SO YOU HAVEN'T BEEN IN THE MEETINGS, BIG DEAL! YOU'VE STILL BEEN HERE, HAVEN'T YOU? YOU'VE STILL BEEN TOGETHER! ME, I'VE BEEN STUCK AT THE DURSLEYS' FOR A MONTH! Hedwig took off of Harry's shoulder and flew a safe distance away to perch on the dresser. Pigwidgeon, Ron's owl shrieked and squeaked as he fluttered around their heads in panic at the noise. Hermione almost cast a silencing charm, but remembered just before she did that she wasn't at Hogwarts. Just because magical people surrounded her, did not mean she could do magic.  
"AND I'VE HANDLED MORE THAN YOU TWO'VE EVER MANAGED AND DUMBLEDORE KNOWS IT - WHO SAVED THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE? WHO GOT RID OF RIDDLE? WHO SAVED BOTH YOUR SKINS FROM THE DEMENTORS? WHO HAD TO GET PAST DRAGONS AND SPHINXES AND EVERY OTHER FOUL THING LAST YEAR? WHO SAW HIM COME BACK? WHO HAD TO ESCAPE FROM HIM? ME!"  
Ron stood staring at Harry, dumfounded, his mouth hanging half-open. Hermione looked down at the ground, not making eye contact and patiently waiting out the tirade.  
"BUT WHY SHOULD I KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON? WHY SHOULD ANYONE BOTHER TO TELL ME WHAT'S HAPPENING? YOU CAN'T HAVE WANTED TO TELL ME THAT MUCH, HUH? OTHERWISE YOU WOULD HAVE SENT ME A BLOODY OWL BUT SINCE DUMBLEDORE MADE YOU SWEAR."  
"Well, he did - "  
"I'VE BEEN NICKING PAPERS OUT OF BINS FOR THE LAST FOUR WEEKS TO TRY AND FIND OUT WHAT IN GOD'S NAME HAS BEEN GOING ON!"  
"We wanted to -"  
"I SUPPOSE YOU'VE BEEN HAVING A REAL LAUGH, HAVEN'T YOU, ALL HOLED UP IN HERE TOGETHER."  
"No, honest," Ron tried to say.  
"We're really sorry!" Hermione burst in. "I would be furious if it was me!" Harry glared at her for a moment and then started pacing around the room. Hermione and Ron watched him in uneasy silence.  
"What is this place?" Harry asked.  
"It's Headquarters," Ron said immediately.  
"For the Order of the Phoenix," Hermione added.  
"And is anyone going to tell me what that is?"  
"It's an army, or a militia, really, totally secret. Dumbledore founded it during the first war against You-Know-Who. Mostly it's people who fought against him last time that are in it."  
"And?" asked Harry, intensifying his glare.  
"And what?" asked Ron.  
"Voldemort! What's happening? Where is he? What's he doing and what are we doing to stop him?"  
"We don't know. They haven't been letting us in on the meetings," said Ron.  
"But we do have the general picture," Hermione cut in hurriedly. "Some of them are on recruitment, and they are constantly guarding something,"  
"That could've been me, couldn't it?" said Harry.  
"Oh yeah," said Ron, and you could see the light bulb switching on in his brain.  
"So what have you been doing, then?"  
"Decontaminating the house. This place hasn't been looked after except by an elderly house elf in ages. There's all sorts of Dark creatures and magic locked away places."


	6. Chp 4: Number Twelve, Grimmauld Pl (P2)

_TW: none for this chapter (that I am aware of. Tell me if somethings needs adding)_

* * *

Two loud cracks made Hermione and Harry jump as Fred and George appeared out of thin air and stood grinning in the middle of the room.  
"Please stop doing that," said Hermione, exasperated.  
They ignored her. "Hello Harry. We thought we heard you come in," said George.  
"It's a good thing you let your anger out like that. Think of what would happen if you left it to fester. Nasty stuff that," said Fred.  
"I'm glad to see you passed your Apparation tests," Harry said, grumpy.  
"With distinction. Anyways, Harry, can you keep it down? We're trying to listen in on the meeting."  
"It won't work," said Ginny, leaning up against the doorway. "Hi, Harry."  
"Hello."  
"Why won't it work?" asked Fred, looking like someone had taken away his favorite sweets.  
"Mum's put an Imperturbable charm on the door. There's no chance the Extendable Ears are going to make it past."  
"How do you know?" asked George.  
Ginny rolled her eyes and walked into the room. "It's good to see you Harry. I'm glad you're finally here."  
"Thanks Ginny," Harry sat down on the bed, still scowling. A few lines had disappeared from his face when he looked back up, "Ok, tell me everything."  
They told him about Bill's and Charlie's jpbs in the Order, that Percy had picked the Ministry over his family, and that the Prophet had been slipping in side remarks about his mental state throughout the paper.  
"Mum's coming," said Fred, tugging hard on the Extendable Ear, and the twins disapparated with another crack.  
Mrs. Weasley popped her head around the door. "The meeting's over and dinner's ready. Ginny, wash your hands, they're filthy. Don't forget to keep your voices down in the hall."  
Ginny sighed and went to wash. Hermione and Harry looked at Harry's slumped figure on the bed.  
Hermione glanced at Ron, worried. "We knew you'd be angry, Harry, we don't blame you. You've just got to understand that we really did try and convince Dumbledore."  
"Yeah, I know," he said shortly. There was another too-long pause. "Who's the house elf who lives here?" he asked with a weak smile.  
"Kreacher. He's a nutter," said Ron.  
"He's not a nutter!"  
"His life's dream is to get his head mounted on a plaque like his dear old mum. That's not normal."  
"If he's a little strange, it's not his fault."  
Ron rolled his eyes. "Hermione still hasn't given up on SPEW."  
"It's not SPEW. It's the Society for the Protection of Elvish Welfare, and I'm not giving up until house elves have the same rights as wixes. Dumbledore said everyone should be nicer to Kreacher too."  
"Oh Merlin, Solomon, and Hecate, can you stop it with the wix thing? You can just say wizards."  
"No," said Hermione, flatly. She turned back to Harry, and tilted her head, confused. He was smiling at them.  
"What?" she asked.  
"I missed you two," he said.  
"You missed us bickering?" she asked, unbelieving.  
"Yeah. Now let's go eat."  
The trio tiptoed through the hall. Hermione waved at Tonks as they passed her sealing the main door with spells.  
She smiled and waved back, then tripped over the umbrella stand.  
A ferocious wailing came from the portrait on the wall behind them as the curtains sprang open, revealing a drooling old woman with yellowed skin and eyes rolling back in her head.  
Mrs. Weasley came flying out of the kitchen and saw Tonks on the floor. "Oh Tonks, again?"  
She ran over to the portrait and tried to tug the curtains closed. The old woman screamed even louder and then started shouting profanities. Hermione flinched and covered her ears.  
"Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, begone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers -"  
A black-haired man barreled down the hall and took over wrestling with one of the curtains.  
"Yoooou!" the woman's eyes popped at the sight of him. "Blood traitor, abomination, shame on my flesh!"  
"Shut UP!" yelled the man. With a huge effort he and Mrs. Weasley managed to heave the curtains closed and her screeching died away.  
The man turned. "Hello Harry," said Sirius. "I see you've met my mother."


	7. Chapter 5: Order of the Pheonix

_AN: If y'all want to leave me some reviews letting me know what you think, what you like, what you don't like, and what you'd like to see more of, that would be greatly appreciated!  
_

_TW: discussion of death_

* * *

"Hermione, what did they say?" whispered Ginny.  
It was dark in their bedroom and Hermione fumbled to light the oil lamp. Ginny was tucked under her covers and staring at Hermione beseechingly.  
"Everything we already knew from eavesdropping or guessing about what You-Know-Who is doing and the way the Ministry is handling things. The only new thing was that You-Know-Who is looking for some kind of weapon."  
"What do you think it could be?"  
"I don't know. Something to make himself more powerful, or something he could use to threaten most of England to giving in to him."  
Ginny shivered. "What if he gets it?"  
"Then we'll need something to counter-act it."  
"Come hold me?" Ginny asked.  
Hermione nodded and turned off the light, making her way by feel over to Ginny's bed. She crawled over her friend and spooned her from behind.  
"Under the covers?" Ginny asked, and Hermione slipped under the blankets.  
She put one arm over Ginny and tucked her legs into Ginny's knees and pulled her friend close to her. Ginny started crying.  
"I don't want my family to die. Everyone is in the Order who's old enough and Fred and George will join as soon as they can, and Ron and you are always there with Harry, and You-Know-Who wants to kill him. My mom is so scared. She's so scared all the time that something's going to happen to us. What if my mom dies? What would I do without my mom?"  
Hermione held her tightly as Ginny sobbed. She didn't know what to say. The possibilities of people she loved dying were too real. She was terrified, and also guiltily relieved that her family wasn't magical. Her parents and aunts and cousins were uninvolved and relatively safer. Unless You-Know-Who decided to use them to get to her to get to Harry, they would remain untouched.  
She needed to work out some way to protect them.  
Hermione heard footsteps in the hallway pause before the door. Mrs. Weasley slowly turned the handle and opened the door. Her face was worried - she must have heard Ginny crying - but her face softened into a small smile when she saw Hermione comforting her daughter. Ginny's eyes were closed and she was crying too hard to notice her mother.  
Hermione and Mrs. Weasley made eye contact. The older woman nodded slightly and soundlessly closed the door.  
Hermione felt as though she had been awarded top marks on a paper, that Mrs. Weasley trusted her enough to take care of her daughter when she was normally so protective.  
Ginny was crying less hard now, and Hermione reached up to brush some of the tears off her cheeks.  
Ginny turned and buried her head in Hermione's sturnum. It was uncomfortable and awkward, but Hermione didn't let go.  
She breathed deeply and evenly and Ginny's breathing gradually slowed to match hers.  
When she was calm, Ginny looked up at Hermione. "Thank you," she said.  
"You're silly," said Hermione, bumping her nose into her friend's. "I'll always be here if you need me."  
"Don't die, okay?"  
"Okay."  
"Will you stay here with me tonight?"  
"That sounds nice."  
Ginny rolled back over and Hermione spooned her again.  
Hermione listened as Ginny's breath became steady and even. Then, she closed her eyes and swiftly fell into sleep.


	8. Chapter 6: The Noble House of Black (P1)

_TW: mistreatment of house elves_

* * *

The next morning they found themselves armed with spray bottles against the Doxie infestation in the upstairs sitting room.  
Hermione covered her lower face with a bandana and aimed the bottle at the curtains.  
"Ready? Spray," said Mrs. Weasley.  
Hermione, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Sirius, and Mrs. Weasley sprayed continuously at the curtains until a swarm of Doxies emerged.  
Hermione aimed directly at the faces of the hairy, little fairies. She didn't want to be pricked by their poisonous teeth.  
She felt a twinge of remorse as the first few dropped to the ground, paralyzed. It didn't take more than a few to fall before she was used to it.  
"Fred. George. Stop fooling around and just spray them," Mrs. Weasley's voice came from across the room.  
Fred was pinning down a Doxie by it's four arms and it was struggling madly.  
"Right. Sorry mum," said George and sprayed the Doxie.  
Mrs. Weasley sighed and returned to the curtains. Hermione watched Fred slip the Doxie into his pocket and narrowed her eyes. They were definitely up to something.  
The swarming slowed as the buckets filled. It was nearly lunch time when they were finally able to sink down into the chesterfields.  
The curtains hung limp and damp behind them and Mrs. Weasley sprung up with a shriek as she sat down on the armchair where Sirius had left the bag of dead rats for Buckbeak.  
Fred and George had their heads together off in a corner, Sirius and Harry had wandered to look at the Black family tapestry, and Mrs. Weasley was resting her head in one hand. Ron and Ginny were playfully pushing each other back and forth.  
Hermione allowed herself to relax.  
Downstairs, the doorbell rang.  
"I keep telling them not to ring the doorbell," Sirius said. Moments later Mrs. Black started wailing and the other portraits throughout the house shouted at her to shut up.  
Mrs. Weasley sprung from the chair. "Everybody stay here," she ordered, closing the door behind herself and Sirius.  
Everybody ran to the window. Mundungus was standing on the stoop beside a pile of dodgey looking cauldrons.  
"WE ARE NOT BECOMING A STOREHOUSE FOR SMUGGLED GOODS!" shouted Mrs. Weasley.  
"Stupid," said Ron. "Mum's been waiting to have a go at him ever since he left when he was supposed to be tailing you. He's gone and given her the perfect excuse."  
"The idiot is letting her get into her stride. You've got to cut her off at the start otherwise she'll go on for hours," said Fred.  
"That's not a very nice way to talk about your mother," said Hermione.  
"Whatever, it's true," said Ron.  
Mrs. Weasley came back into the room breathing heavily and still a little red in the face. She levitated a platter of sandwiches onto the coffee table, "Here's lunch. Stay here until someone comes to get you."  
She was back through the door before anyone had time to say thank you.  
Fred went and opened the door a crack, "I wonder what they're talking about. Do you think it's worth getting the Extendable Ears?" As he leaned out the door Kreacher slipped under his arm.  
"Nasty little blood traitors, all of them," he muttered. "Oh if my mistress could see this house now, how she would suffer. Criminals and traitors, werewolves and that awful son that broke her heart when he ran away. Can't have them soiling the house with their filth. Horrid things. Touching everything."  
"Hello Kreacher," said Fred, closing the door with a snap.  
Kreacher jumped and bowed low. "Kreacher did not see the young master standing there," he said. Then added under his breath, "So unnatural. Twins. And there's the other one." He stood their shaking his head. "Who's this new boy? Don't know what he's doing here, bold as brass. Just as filthy as the rest of them, I'd suppose. Associating with them."  
Harry looked as if he was equally likely to burst into laughter or into a fit of rage. Hermione wasn't sure.  
"This is Harry," she said, tentatively. "Harry Potter."  
Kreacher's eyes widened. "The Mudblood is talking to Kreacher as though she is his friend. What would Mistress say if she saw?"  
"Don't call her that!" Ron and Ginny shouted.  
"It's okay," said Hermione. "He doesn't know what he's saying. He hasn't had a chance to learn that it's wrong."  
"He knows exactly what he's saying and he knows it's offensive," said Sirius, entering the room. His voice was harsh, "What are you doing here, Kreacher?"  
Kreacher bowed so low his long nose touched the dusty carpet. "Kreacher was cleaning."  
"A likely story," Sirius said and snorted.  
"Kreacher takes care of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black."  
"It gets blacker every day. You haven't done a spot of cleaning in twelve years. What were you in here for?"  
"Master did always like his little joke." Kreacher said, and then mumbled "Kreacher couldn't let them take the tapestry. It's been in the family ten generations. Mistress would never forgive Kreacher if he let them destroy it."  
"I thought that might be it," said Sirius without sympathy. "Now get out. Go make yourself useful elsewhere."  
It seemed as though Kreacher couldn't bear to disobey a direct order from Sirius, no matter how much he despised his master or the order. With a crack he disappeared.


	9. Chapter 6: The Noble House of Black (P2)

_Content Warning (CW): Slavery_

_A/N: Luna is gender fluid and uses ey/em/eirs for pronouns, which is like they/them/theirs without the 'th' and conjugated singularly. Here's a thing about why pronouns are important_ watch?v=3xpvricekxU

* * *

"Sirius, he's not right in the head," said Hermione. "I don't think he realizes we can hear him."  
"He's been alone too long," said Sirius, "taking mad orders from my mother's portrait and talking to himself, but he was always foul."  
"You could set him free," said Hermione.  
"We can't. He knows too much about the Order. Anyways, the shock would kill him. You suggest to him that he leaves this house, see how he takes it."  
Sirius walked over to the tapestry and Harry followed him. Everyone else fell on the sandwiches.  
"I keep telling you that not all house elves want to be free," said Ginny.  
"I know," said Hermione. "And because you called me out I started actually listening to what it was that they did want, but I still don't understand. It's slavery! Britain abolished slavery how many years ago? A hundred or so? Too long for slavery to still be happening here."  
"You don't have to understand it," Ginny said, gentle as she always was with Hermione when they talked about this. "Maybe in the future they won't want to be servants for wixes anymore, but in the meantime all we can do it help them get what they do want."  
Hermione sighed, "I know. You're right as always."  
"Kreacher wants to preserve the things in this house. We could save some things that aren't riddled with Dark magic for him."  
"That's a really good idea. Let's do that. But nothing dangerous."  
"Nothing dangerous," Ginny agreed. "Do you want to do some planning for S.P.E.W. and the Alliance now?"  
"It feels weird to do anything without Luna."  
"Yeah, but I've felt so useless all summer. My brothers are horrible and I just want to be able to do something that will make a difference."  
"We could brainstorm some activities. Or we could plan the things we've done before and want to continue."  
"Let's re-plan things we've done before. I like having Luna's brain around when we do brainstorming. Ey always thinks in such different ways."  
"It's Luna's specialty to be two steps ahead and a kilometre over to the left of everyone else. I love eir brain," said Hermione.  
"I know you do," teased Ginny, nudging Hermione with her elbow.  
"Not like that!" said Hermione, "Ey's just my friend."  
Ginny looked at her with a blank face and a partially cocked eyebrow.  
"Okaaay, maybe a little like that. But mostly not! I don't want to cross eir boundaries."  
"You know ey is romantic, right. As in, would be interested in having a romantic relationship with someone."  
"Yeah," said Hermione, flustered and fiddling her fingers. "It just, I really enjoy being eir friend and having em in my life in the way that they are. I think ey is attractive and interesting and such a wonderful person, as well as an incredibly talented wix. I don't want to change that dynamic."  
"I was mostly teasing," said Ginny, relenting, "but I knew you liked em."  
"I do," said Hermione, "but don't you dare tell em. Deal?"  
"Deal."  
Mrs. Weasley came back in to the room. "Let's get back to work," she said. She looked supremely satisfied.  
Hermione wondered what had happened to Mundungus and the cauldrons. They were probably on their way far away from the house, judging by how pleased Mrs. Weasley looked. She didn't feel sorry for Mundungus. He was rude, encouraged the worst in Fred and George, and she hadn't forgiven him either for leaving Harry and putting her friend in harm's way.  
She quickly ate the remaining few bites of her sandwich and cleaned her hands with a napkin.  
The glass cabinets were filled with silver instruments with pinchers that fought back when you tried to put them in the bin, snuffboxes filled with moldy powders, and curiosities that didn't house dark magic, but were dingy and decorated with nasty pictures.  
Hermione slipped a locket no one could open into her pocket. She didn't sense any magic on it, though it would be impossible to tell for sure since she couldn't use spells. It was a large, gaudy yellow stone in silver casing with a long silver chain, and a depiction of the Slytherin snake embossed. She thought Kreacher would be glad to have it.  
On the other side of the room, Harry opened and wound a music box. The music tugged at her, drawing her towards the box to stare at the little whirling Pegasus and her reflection in the small mirror.  
She couldn't take her eyes off of it. The music reminded her of something - the lullaby her father used to sing to her every night before bed when she was little. She smiled. She was light and floaty to the point where the ceiling of the room looked inviting, and increasingly calm. The calmness sat on her, weighed down her limbs and her eyes. She was drousy and her eyelids drooped. The lightness was replaced with the heaviness of the calm and everything took so much effort.  
She didn't want to turn her head to look at the others, or lift her hand to scratch an itch on her nose. Even breathing seemed like a chore.  
Ginny darted forward and snapped the music box shut. Hermione came back to herself with a start. She shook her head to clear it. Beside her Ron giggled nervously, and Ginny tossed the music box into the bin with the other dark instruments to be destroyed.  
Silently everyone shuffled back to the task of emptying the shelves with more presence of mind. When Ginny wasn't paying attention, Hermione stared at her.  
After her first year at Hogwarts and her trials with Riddle's diary and the Chamber of Secrets, Ginny had lost most of her naivety. Hermione hadn't known her before, but she could still see the change in her friend between the person who laughed freely in the photos taken pre-Hogwarts and the living version of Ginny now.  
Ginny's experiences had made her harder, less gullible. She looked at the world with a highly critical eye and reacted quickly and without hesitation to any threat of danger.  
She was powerful. Resolute. She attacked every problem relentlessly until it crumbled before her. When she learned new jinxes and hexes she was stone-faced and steel-hearted. She always approached offensive magic that way. Hermione had noticed it immediately when she started practicing with her.  
Of all of the people that had come to her for help with school, Ginny was still her favourite. They had spent the summer after Ginny's first year pouring over books on offensive magic, learning the wand motions and practicing the spell pronunciation separately.  
Once they were back at the school they had sealed off empty classrooms and practiced relentlessly. If Ginny had needed help with the research, she certainly didn't need help with the actual casting. Her will power and determination was so strong that every jinx crackled and every hex met its mark. Hermione had learned from her.  
It would take a very brave wix to take on Ginny. Even adults would be hard pressed to hold their own, especially if they were idiotic enough to make Ginny furious.  
Hermione's heart felt uncomfortably too large, it was forced up against her ribs and her stomach dropped, hot and tight. She was so proud.  
Ginny felt Hermione's eyes on her and turned around, smiling. Hermione smiled back. She was very lucky to have Ginny, Harry, Ron, and Luna as her best friends.


End file.
